Drinking in the Dark
by sunnycalendargirl
Summary: Excerpt from Ex umbra in solem for the KHRfest. Set four years after the end of Vivi memor leti and written for the prompt "Xanxus - pacts; Protect me from what I want". Tsuna checks on Xanxus late one night.


**A/N:** All of my stories for the KHRfest are excerpts from either **Vivi memor leti **or **Ex umbra in solem**. So they're kind of 'behind the scenes' pieces that may or may not eventually make their way into the published story, but were fun to write. This piece is in response to all the questions I've received about how Xanxus reacts to Reborn regaining his adult body and both of their relationships with Tsuna. I thought it would be fun to show how thoroughly Xanxus refuses to admit he's attached to Tsuna in any way.

This is set about four years after the end of **Vivi memor leti**.

* * *

"You're drinking too much again," a soft voice chided from the shadows by the door. "As much as you may not care about whether your liver will hold up a few more years or not, some of us do."

Xanxus swirled the drink in his hand, listening to the sound of ice clinking in the insanely expensive crystal glass while he debated whether to bother acknowledging the voice, much less the comment itself. Drinking was a dark and pleasing form of solace for him, numbing the edge of a world that kept him dangerously on edge, even on a good and quiet day. He liked that fuzzy blur that alcohol brought to his day.

"Mind your own business, little boss," he snarled quietly, feeling no need to expend the energy necessary to raise his voice. "You may have the right to tell me who to kill, but that's where your privileges end."

He watched with his eyes half-closed as the slender figure pushed away from the wall and blinked as he heard the click of the lock on the door. One dark eyebrow lifted in a silent question as Tsuna's hands lifted to loosen his tie, tucking it in his back pocket as he moved closer. It wasn't often that the little brat came all the way over to the Varia estate to talk to him, much less in private. No matter how much their relationship had improved over the past several years, there was still that hint of timidity about him when he was alone with Xanxus.

"You are my business," Tsuna told him as he came to a halt directly in front of him, fingers working quickly to unbutton and loosen his collar. The corner of Xanxus' mouth quirked in amusement at the reminder of how much the kid hated wearing suits and formal wear of all kinds. "Especially when your people call my people to feed them subtle hints about your well-being."

Xanxus made a mental note to beat Squalo until he couldn't speak for sticking his nose in where it didn't belong. "I've told you before that you shouldn't listen to the whining of those little bitches."

"Reborn said the same thing," Tsuna commented, his eyes not missing the sharp twitch Xanxus gave at the mention of that name. "He said I should leave you alone to sort yourself out. I told him to mind his own business on this one."

That was harder to brush off, as everyone knew that their ridiculous boss listened to everything that cursed bastard said, and Xanxus found himself looking up curiously despite himself. His curiosity faded, however, when Tsuna settles himself over his lap, straddling his hips in the oversized armchair Xanxus was so fond of. When Tsuna stole his drink and knocked it back in a few long swallows, Xanxus found his eyes focusing on the pale column of skin as it moved with each sip.

"You shouldn't be here," Xanxus told him, his voice slightly hoarse now. "You should be home, with that irritating bastard. Isn't that where you belong?"

"I think that I belong wherever my Family needs me," Tsuna informed him, setting the glass aside and reaching out to tug the last of the knot in Xanxus' tie before pulling it off and tossing it onto the end table. "And tonight, I think that I belong here with you. I don't like the thought of you sitting alone in the dark, especially not today." His fingers set to work on the buttons of Xanxus' shirt next, opening them one by one until he could push the shirt aside, shoving the jacket off with it.

"Today is no different than any other day," Xanxus informed him drolly and then hissed softly as Tsuna's fingers slid over his chest. He realized he'd made a fatal flaw in not stopping Tsuna before he'd made it to this position, forgetting the unnatural power this irritating child boss had over him when he was able to actually touch him. "So go home. I don't need you here."

"That's too bad," Tsuna replied, leaning in to drop a kiss at the juncture of his neck and shoulder before nipping at him sharply. "I've decided this is where I want to be tonight." His tongue slid over the bite mark, soothing it. "So you'll just have to put up with me."

Prepared to argue, his words trailed off as Tsuna's hips rocked slightly, pressing them together in a painfully intimate way. Much like every time before, Xanxus found he couldn't keep his body from reacting to the squirming bundle in his lap. Instead, he growled as he felt himself growing painfully hard at a brutally fast rate.

"Tsunayoshi…" He frowned as the threat normally inherent in his voice failed him, the tone turning dark and demanding instead.

It pissed him off, the way the boy had him so thoroughly leashed these days. It was his own fault, though, and he knew it. He should never have agreed to the request to take the boy's fucking virginity in the first place. Now he found himself drawn to him at the strangest of times, something that absolutely infuriated him.

"You're pretty bossy tonight," Tsuna told him, lifting his head from Xanxus' neck. "But I'm not going anywhere, Xanxus. I came here to be with you and I'm staying until morning. So shut up and enjoy it."

Frowning, Xanxus started to snap back a reply, onto to find himself muted as Tsuna's mouth descended onto his. He lifted his hands, determined to push him back, only to find that they'd chosen to disobey his brain, one sliding up into all that irritating brown hair and the other moving to work on getting rid of the shirt the nosy brat still wore. He growled again, this time with a more demanding tone to it as the kiss deepened, their tongues sliding against each other wickedly.

Time blurred, something Xanxus would have liked to blame on the alcohol but knew from experience had to do more with the combination of hands, tongues and searing arousal. When he was able to focus again, Tsuna's shirt was gone and both their zippers were down. His hand was around Tsuna's cock and the brat was whimpering into Xanxus' mouth in a needy, demanding whine. He hated that sound because it always went straight to his cock and broke his control completely.

He could almost hear the brittle, crystalline sound of his control as it snapped into a million pieces and in a flash of movement he was up and he'd pinned Tsuna to the wall, the brat's face pressing into it roughly. His hands tugged Tsuna's pants down and out of his way and it was only Tsuna's frantic reminders that made sure Xanxus' fingers were slick as they thrust deeply into him. Tired of listening to him, Xanxus sank his teeth into Tsuna's shoulder, marking him roughly. He had to admit he liked how Tsuna's tone changed from frantic to needy very quickly. Maybe he had the brat better trained than he'd thought.

"More," Tsuna demanded, hips rocking back onto his fingers urgently, reminding Xanxus of why he enjoyed these times with him so much. He'd taught him well, and Tsuna had a passionate love for good, hard sex. "Please…"

There were many things he'd refuse Tsuna cheerfully, but his cock wasn't one of them. Pulling his fingers out, he pulled Tsuna's hips back and kicked his legs further apart. Not even bothering to do more than shove his pants down enough to be out of the way, he grasped Tsuna's hips and drove into him deeply, reveling in the slight burn that told him he probably should have slicked himself if he'd wanted this to be easy on Tsuna.

Not that he cared, of course, but soft and gentle didn't seem to be what Tsuna had come here for, and he pushed back demandingly, taking Xanxus in fully. From there, Xanxus' world faded into a searing blur of movement, tightness and heat as he drove into Tsuna again and again. He could feel pleasure building in him like a white-hot coil tensing under his skin. The pleasant buzz of the alcohol held it under control until Tsuna wailed into his arm and clamped down on him tightly as he spilled over the wall. The sheer pressure on his cock pulled him over and he filled Tsuna in hot waves as his teeth sank into the nape of his neck, holding him in place roughly, growling against his skin.

He had to think quickly, however, as Tsuna's knees gave out, and his arms moved to catch him without hesitation. "You idiot, don't seduce a man and then fall flat on your face."

Pulling back, he lifted Tsuna into his arms, snorting lightly as he curled against Xanxus' chest, cheek rubbing against his skin. Kicking his slacks off as he walked, Xanxus carried him over to the bedroom, settling down onto it with Tsuna in his arms. It wasn't that he was feeling particularly nice or anything, but it had been getting late anyway, and he'd been planning on moving to the bed soon anyway, he told himself.

"I'm not going home tonight," Tsuna reminded him, snuggling into him as he yawned. "You're going to have to put up with me all night."

"What did I do to deserve that?" Xanxus asked, snorting lightly even as he adjusted them both for comfort and moved a hand to comb through Tsuna's hair lazily.

"It's your birthday," Tsuna informed him, dropping a soft kiss on the side of his neck. "I worked hard all week so I could be with you tonight and keep you from drinking yourself stupid, or worse, to death."

Xanxus snorted again in amusement before relenting enough to move Tsuna from his lap long enough to finish stripping himself and then tuck them both into the bed. He settled Tsuna against his side, letting him rest his cheek on his chest before resuming his petting of all that irritating brown hair. He should have realized his birthday would have something to do with this late night visit. The boy was irritating in his ongoing concern regarding Xanxus' welfare.

"It's just a day, Tsunayoshi," Xanxus informed him bluntly. "Just like every other day."

"It's your day," Tsuna mumbled against his skin, clearly exhausted. "I wanted to spend as much of it as I could with you." He laughed softly. "I should have come earlier. I would have blown off the work if I'd known earlier you were sitting here alone in the dark drinking like that."

"I don't care about birthdays," Xanxus said, yawning slightly, arm tightening slightly around Tsuna.

"I care about you," Tsuna replied. "Most days, I even love you."

Xanxus blinked and lifted his head at that, only to frown when he realized Tsuna had drifted off to sleep after his last little outburst. He contemplated shaking the brat to wake him up and make him repeat himself, but found that he couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he reached over to the nightstand and grabbed the remote, flicking on the widescreen television and hunting out the international news. He wouldn't be able to sleep while Tsuna was here, but the brat didn't need to know that.


End file.
